The Ministry of Foreign Affairs has issued the following statement:“The Kingdom of Saudi Arabia has been closely following media reports on the incident in the Republic of North Ossetia in the south of the Russian Federation in which hostages have been taken, including a large number of children. The Kingdom has also been following the latest developments in the incident in Iraq where two French journalists were taken hostage. The Kingdom condemns all such acts, which disregard the sanctity of human lives and which are prohibited by all human principles. The Kingdom stresses that Islam, which is based on justice, mercy and tolerance, forbids any act that causes harm to innocent people; and urges the hostage takers in both incidents to release the hostages as soon as possible.”

The Organization of the Islamic Conference (OIC) has also condemned the hostage-taking incident in the city of Beslan in southern Russia, as has the Muslim World League (MWL).